


Tony Stark's Heart

by angryfox



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, But mostly fluff, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Disabled Character, Domestic Avengers, Fluff and Angst, Original Character(s), Parent Tony Stark, Past Child Abuse, Protective Tony Stark, Team Dynamics, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark-centric, kind of goes in order of the movies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:15:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21828802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angryfox/pseuds/angryfox
Summary: The team knows Tony—he is a selfish, impulsive, playboy that doesn’t work well with others.  Which is why they don’t understand why Pepper still works for Tony or why Fury lets Tony do whatever he wants.  It’s only when the team discovers that Tony is hiding something—someone, that it becomes clear they actually don’t know Tony at all.**I am reposting and editing from my story (same name, same author name) on fanfiction--there are currently 22 chapters there**
Kudos: 44





	1. Tony Meets His Heart

**Author's Note:**

> There are currently 22 chapters of this story posted on fanfiction.net using the same account name (as of today, December 16--I plan to make that 23 tomorrow). I really like archive's format and decided to rewrite and add chapters to this story while posting them here. I will still be adding new chapters to the fanfiction account as well, I just wanted to try some of the suggestions people have made while also cleaning up the writing I did four years ago. (I like a lot of my later chapters better lol) The stories will be almost the same.

A drunken Tony Stark stumbled into the mansion, greeting Jarvis with a low slur before collapsing on the Italian leather couch. It was one of the rare nights he didn’t feel like living up to his playboy persona and left the ladies at the—he thinks it was a charity dinner—wanting. Tony doesn’t tend to keep up with what event he was attending—he just went where Obie tells him to go and hands out checks when asked.

Now, alone and drunk, he kind of wishes someone were here with him. Most of the women had been pretty, some drop dead gorgeous and meeting the standards of his nightly conquests, but even he got tired of one night stands every once in a while. There was never anything more than the sex—after his parents’ deaths he was the richest young bachelor in the world—which made dating nearly as difficult as it was when he was a teenager and MIT. Pepper would be pleased at least. A morning where she didn’t have to escort a disgruntled and sometimes very pissed young woman out was a wonderful way to start any day. 

“JARVIS, dim the lights.” Maybe he could fall asleep before the sun came up.

He lasted about five minutes staring at the ceiling until he decided to head down to the lab. After the last time he had tinkered while drunk, Pepper had put a ban on all of the fun tools—specifically the flame thrower. He didn’t see what the big deal was, he only had mild burns and the company had ended up with a new top of the line product. Pepper threatened to quit however, and so, even though he could easily override Jarvis and unlock his tools, Tony stuck to using holograms to make designs and Jarvis fabricating the best ideas in the mornings. 

Plopping down at his workstation, Tony cracked his fingers before stretching his arms above his head. Dummy wheeled over with a package of blueberries and mug filled with scorching black coffee. The robot whirled and clicked in satisfaction as Tony patted its head and took a deep gulp of what he believed to be liquid gold.

“Pull up last night’s schematics. I thought of some improvements we can make to the repulsorlift function.”

“Of course, Sir.” 3D blueprints surrounded Tony as the latest missile he was working on was pulled from the server. _Jericho_ was written in cursive on the top of the schematic. It wouldn’t be on the market for year or two, Obie liked to release Tony’s inventions at a slower rate—often saving the best ones for after Tony’s latest scandals. Investors tend to forget a drunken escapade when a shiny new weapon is dropped into their greedy little hands.

“Jar, make the power system bigger- “

A crash makes Tony stop and whirl around in his seat in an attempt to locate the source of the noise.

“I swear on that Shelby, Dummy, if you broke another Goddamn coffee pot, I am going to disassemble you into scrap metal.” It was a lie, and both Tony and JARVIS knew it. He would never hurt Dummy or ruin the perfection that was his 1967 Shelby Cobra. 

“Sir, I do believe the crash came from the living room.”

“Ah what the hell.”

Grumbling, Tony makes his way up the stairs to find out what kind of trouble the bot got himself into this time. He knew he shouldn’t have given Dummy access to the lift—he just got sick of the bot trying to get up the stairs and failing all the time. Finding the little guy stuck on his side was both funny and heartbreaking every time.

He moves slow, a broken pot isn’t anything to rush over, but then he hears it. A sound that was most definitely not a robot—it was organic, human, young. Taking the stairs two at a time he is breathing heavy when he spots Dummy whirling around the coffee table frantically. 

A small thrashing lump is the source of the wailing, a dark red liquid slowly seeping into the rug around it. Tony carefully pulls back the sticky blanket to find molten gold eyes staring back at him. The wailing stops for a second in surprise but soon the golden eyes are flooded with tears and, what Tony has now realized is a child—no a baby—is screaming at the top of her lungs.

Tony pulls back the rest of the blanket, a burning building in his stomach as disgust and anger fills him. Three short stumps and one right arm extend off the child’s torso. Both her legs end just above where her knees would have been; her left arm forearm was also missing.

He tries not to gag at the smell of burned flesh. The appendages seemed to have been recently removed—sutured would be more correct. The burned ends caused the wounds to not bleed as badly as severing them would have—but it is clear to Tony that he needs a doctor here _now._

“Jarvis call Dr. Clemmons. Tell her it’s an emergency and I’ll pay her whatever she wants, and her discretion is appreciated as always.”

“Of course, Sir.” 

“Call Pepper too. Tell her the same thing. Let them in when they get here.” 

The baby is only sniffling quietly now, exhausted most likely from both the pain and her sobs. Tony is terrified to touch the child, but he knows he can’t leave her bleeding on the floor. Scooping her up as gently as he can, unconsciously cooing at her when she whines in discomfort. He leaves the dirtied blanket on the floor, leaving the child naked. 

He carries her over to the kitchen table that the interior decorator had insisted he get, it had cost $20,000 and was made out of the most expensive wood the woman could find. He had never once used it until now. It would most likely be ruined after tonight and the tiny blonde that had designed his kitchen would die in despair. Tony had no regret pushing the matching table set off to make room for the child in his arms. Dummy bumps into his leg causing Tony to look down at the robot. In his mechanical claw are a couple of towels as well as some blankets thrown over his body.

“Good boy.” The bot chirps, hovering nearby as Tony tries to soothe the child.

He uses the smallest blanket to wrap around the child; the towels to loosely wrap around the stumps. Whimpering causes him to go slower.

“It’s okay,” he breathes in, his chest shaking as he tries to convince himself more than the baby. “You’re okay. You’re gonna be okay.”

“Sir, both women have arrived.”

Tony turns to see Pepper and Dr. Clemmons round the corner into the kitchen area to then pause in shock. Clemmons recovers quickly and rushes to look at the child’s wounds. Pepper stands with her mouth agape. 

“How did this happen?” Clemmons is unwrapping the towels as the child starts to become more distressed at her wounds being touched. Tony grabs the only hand she has left, letting her squeeze his finger as his other hand runs through her white tufts of hair. Teary golden eyes stare at him as her whimpers soften at his touch. 

“I don’t know, I was in the lab. I heard a crash and found her next to my ruined coffee table.”

“You don’t know how she got here?” Clemmons raises an eyebrow at him.

“No.” 

“Jarvis would have the surveillance footage of the room, right?” Tony looked to Pepper and nodded. 

The young woman pulled out her Stark tablet and walked to stand next to Tony. While Pepper had initially been frozen in shock, she had recovered and returned to her normal self. Tony had never been more grateful that he had stolen the red head from his company, her composure in all situations was one of the many reasons Tony kept her as his P.A. Hell, he probably couldn’t survive without her.

“Jarvis play the security feed from the living room to a few minutes before the crash happened.” 

“Yes, Sir.”

Clemmons continues to treat the child as the pair watches the tablet. An empty living room is shown on screen until Dummy rolls into the view with a couple mugs dangling from his claw. The robot must have been doing the dishes—Tony tended to hoard coffee mugs in the lab until there were no clean ones to use. 

Dummy leaves the living room quickly and the activity on the screen remains non-existent for nearly half a minute. A sudden bright light above the coffee table causes the screen to light up and blind Pepper and Tony momentarily. From a vortex of white and blue light a cloaked figure is thrown onto the coffee table, shattering the glass. The figure stands up quickly, gently placing the bundle on the ground along with a note off to the side that Tony hadn’t noticed before. Clutching at their side, the figure’s whole body moves with each gasping breath before retreating back into the light.

“What the actual fuck was that?”

“Tony- “

“Who was that?”

“Tony we- “

“Pep I’m kind of freaking out here because that was not okay. What technology even makes a weird teleportation-vortex thingy? I don’t have security for that shit!”

“Tony listen- “

“And what was with the weird Assassin’s Creed guy? Who wears a cloak anymore? Did he do this to her? Why would he leave her here? Who the hell cuts off a kid’s arm and legs? We have- “

“TONY!” Tony stopped his hysterical rant to look at Pepper.

“Tony,” her hand rests on his arm, “we have to call someone. This isn’t for us to handle.” 

Tony blinked and looked at the little girl on the table in front of him. Her golden eyes were locked onto his from and her lip was trembling. Silvery-white hair sticking up at all angles on the top of her head. He looked to see she never let go of his him despite Clemmons being done. Her hand was tiny, chubby little fingers wrapping around his index finger. He couldn’t imagine she was older than a couple months. 

“No. No, we can’t do that.” A different type of warmth built in his chest as he let the child maneuver his finger toward her mouth. She was probably hungry.

“Tony, this kid just came from a vortex.” Pepper stood on the other side of the table now. “That isn’t normal! We have to call police or the government or something!”

“We can’t call anyone, Pep.” He looked up to meet her eyes. “What do you think they will do when they found out how she got here? You’re right, anyone can see she isn’t normal. She’ll be sent to a lab or be stuck in some government facility for the rest of her life.” 

“He is right you know.” Tony and Pepper look at Dr. Clemmons as she began to pack her medical supplies back into her medical bag. “Even while I was treating her, the burns were already healing at a rapid rate. Her body would have sealed the wounds on its own even if you had not called me. Every lab will want to get their hands on her for research.”

Pepper’s face drained of color as she looked at the child laying on the table. Her tiny body fought to stay awake, but exhaustion was slowly getting the better of her. Tony was right, they couldn’t call anyone. 

“What do we do with her then?” Clemmons smirked at Pepper as Tony began to run his hand through the child’s hair again. After retrieving the note from the floor, she held it out to Pepper, it read simply:

_Take care of her._

“Well it looks like whoever left her isn’t coming back.” A fond sigh escaped the woman as she watched the billionaire. She was his doctor, but she was also his friend. “And it seems like they have bonded.” 

“Oh no, Tony couldn’t do that.” Pepper shook her head; Tony could barely take care of himself.

“I think I want to.” Her head snapped to look at Tony, he was still focused on the child in front of him.

“Tony, you can’t be serious.”

“I am serious. She needs me Pep.” Clemmons had helped settle the toddler into Tony’s arms and he was now looking at her with those damn puppy eyes of his that were hard to resist on a normal day. She stood no chance with him holding a broken child in his arms.

“Fine, but you have to take care of her. And that means no partying every night.”

“Of course.” 

“And you have to baby proof this place. You can’t leave the blow torch on the back of the toilet anymore!”

“Naturally.” Tony nods as Clemmons turns to him.

“Why would you—”

“You never know when you’re going to need to solder something.”

“And no girls!” Pepper whirls at him. “You cannot have random women here every night with a baby to take care of!”

“I got it, Pep.” The baby is in his arms now, her breathing even as he rocks her to sleep.

“I mean it Tony. She needs to be bathed and clothed and fed and dear God, what have I just agreed to?”

“I don’t know yet, Pep, but I think it’s something good.” A smile lights his face. Tony didn’t know why, but ever since he had first gotten a glimpse of those golden eyes, he felt like she should be his. He needed to protect her.

Pepper’s shoulders just slumped in defeat. All she could hope for is that she wouldn’t regret this later.

* * *

Dr. Clemmons returned the next week to check in on the young patient and see how Tony was settling. In that week, Pepper had gotten papers drawn up and paid their way past the usual legal channels in order to make the adoption quiet and quick. Walking into the living room, Clemmons smiled at the baby swing and other new additions of baby-themed furniture that had been added to the room. Gone was the pristine wealth as it was the beautiful chaos that came with being a parent.

“Hey, Doc.”

Dummy sped past her to meet Tony at the top of the steps leading to the lab. The broken child she had met the week before was giggling as Tony praised the robot and took the bottle from the extended claw. 

“How is she doing?”

“Well she sleeps a lot. And eats a lot. And poops too. Like a lot. Like more than five times a day sometimes.” Tony pauses to breathe. “Pepper said its normal, but I don’t believe her. Is that normal?” 

“Yes, Tony, that is normal.” Clemmons chuckles as Tony sits on the couch and sets the bottle down on the new coffee table, settling into a comfortable position so that the baby could be examined and fed at the same time.

“It looks like the skin has healed over the wounds.” Gently running a finger over the smooth skin, Clemmons shakes her head. “I don’t think she had been blessed with the ability to back limbs however.”

“Yeah, I figured. I’m already working on something to help her when she gets a little older. I’m going to need your help with it though.” 

Tony gestures with his head as Dummy hands the doctor a tablet. Scanning over the blueprint, Clemmons raises an eyebrow at the genius as he burps his newly adopted daughter.

“You’re going to make her mechanical limbs?”

“Not yet, she is too little for me to fit anything on her, but I want to start researching now with your help. You can stick your name on it—equal credit, it would be great move for your career. I can use SI to introduce them and legalize them in the medical world. By the time she is ready to walk, we could have them ready for her.”

“Most babies take their first steps at around ten months. You’re telling me these mechanical limbs will be integrated into the medical world in the next year?” Tony rolls his eyes at the doctor as she ruins his hopes and dreams.

“Okay, so maybe more like when she is three or four. She’ll be late on walking, but she’ll be ahead on everything else, I guarantee it. She is a Stark now after all.” Placing the bottle down, Tony bounces the baby on his knee, smiling at the soft giggles he gets out of her.

“Is she now? Did you finally name her then?”

“Eleanor Maria Stark, Elli for short.”

“What a beautiful name Tony.” The man only grins in pride. 

Clemmons never thought she would see the day when Tony Stark became a parent. It suited him. Elli continued to giggle and gurgle causing both adults to laugh as well. Dummy whirled up next to them, Elli squealing in delight while reaching for the robot with her good arm. Tony lowered her, letting her see her robot brother.

As her skin grazed the robot’s metal exterior, Elli’s eyes flashed an electric blue and the lights began flickering as Dummy was encased in a blue glow. Once her eyes returned to their golden shade, the lights returned to normal albeit shining slightly brighter than before and Dummy began twirling in excitement.

“Is that normal?”

“No, not really.” Clemmons eyes raked the ceiling before looking back at the Starks.

“Didn’t think so.”


	2. In which Obie is an A-hole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did not edit this one. It aged well.

They were up early, much earlier than Tony would have ever gotten up before. Elli was a good baby, much better than Pepper’s nephew, who in her opinion, was a menace. But babies were babies. And although the little girl was more well behaved then others, she still woke up frequently during the night and demanded attention at the most inconvenient times. Thankfully, Tony’s sleep schedule had been erratic even before Elli’s arrival and the feedings and diaper changes throughout the night hardly phased him. Tony moved through the kitchen with practiced precision. A bottle of formula was being heated in the microwave while he got his coffee ready. By the time he was having his first sips, Elli would also have her breakfast ready to be chugged down. For the past few weeks, the two of them have been holed up in the mansion. Most thought he was having one of his inventing episodes. Tony and Pepper did not bother to correct anyone. 

A few days prior, Tony had decided that very few people needed to know about Eleanor Maria Stark’s existence. At least not until she was much older. Pepper and Dr. Clemmons obviously knew already. Obie would have to know once he got back from that business trip in New York. Rhodey was actually coming over today, not that he knew he was meeting Tony’s new bundle of joy; it was going to be a surprise. And, of course, Happy—the man was going to eventually be driving the child to school in order to hide her connection to Tony. 

All the secrecy was for multiple reasons, the most basic was that he didn’t want her to grow up in the spotlight. He had hated the media watching and documenting his every move as a child and didn’t wish for her to go through the same experience. That, and the fact that she had golden eyes and white hair. While he loved Elli dearly, her eyes and hair were obvious signs that she wasn’t normal. He had to figure out how to deal with that eventually. Kids needed to interact with other kids after all. Maybe contacts and hair dye? 

Tony walked into his bathroom dragging the baby swing behind him. The space was much larger than necessary and had plenty of room for Elli to sit in the corner while he got ready. He put the swing’s setting on low so she would be somewhat entertained while he bathed.

Tony is halfway through the lathering and repeating process when the water suddenly shut off. While Elli was good in most regards, she definitely presented her own challenges. Specifically, the whole glowing and shutting off the electricity thing she had going on. He would have to deal with that too, somehow. Since the incident with Dr. Clemmons, Elli had shut off the mansion’s power on multiple occasions and this was the third time she had done it while he was in the middle of a shower. She only giggles cutely when he sticks his soapy head out to look at her sitting innocently in her swing, the only sign that she is the culprit is the glowing electric blue color that her eyes are shining in his direction.

“Now you listen here, little missy. You better turn the water back on or I’m going to come out there and tickle you again.” 

Tony isn’t sure if she understands what he is saying, he likes to think she can. The playful threat works though and a little squeal and gurgle accompanies her eyes returning to their (not) normal color. The water flows freely again—colder than previously and making Tony jump in shock and sending a light glare at the child. She totally did that on purpose. 

“Sir, Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes is at the front door.”

“Let him in Jarvis, tell him I’ll be out in a few.”

Tony shuts off the water once he is sure all the soap is rinsed out of his hair. Dressing in the clothes he left on the counter, he scoops Elli out of her swing and fastens her into the sling that rests against his chest. Once she is settled, he heads towards the living room to greet his friend. Rhodey is sitting on the couch having obviously made himself at home while waiting for Tony. Sock clad feet are resting on the new coffee table, the television playing some college basketball game that happened to be on. 

“Rhodey, my love! How are you?” 

“Tony,” Rhodey turns towards his friend’s voice only to nearly fall off of the couch, “Tony what is that?”

“What is what, honeybear?”

“Tony, don’t play games with me.” Rhodes drags a hand down his face—he was not prepared to deal with this when he left the house this morning.

“You’re going to have to be more specific, platypus.” Tony stands with his hands on his hips, as though he is unaware of extra weight hanging off of his torso.

“Tony there is a child strapped to your chest. Why?” 

“Oh my goodness! There is a child attached to me! How did you get there?” Tony pokes the child on the nose causing an eruption of giggles. 

“Tony,” Rhodes sighs and Tony sits down next to him on the couch.

“Fine, sourpatch. Gotta ruin all of my fun,” Tony pulls the child gently out of sling so that Rhodey and Elli can both get a good look at each other, “Elli this is Uncle Rhodey, Rhodey this is Eleanor Maria Stark—my adopted daughter.”

Rhodes stares at the now fully exposed baby. The sling had hidden some features and now he couldn’t help but stare.

“Tony, why the fu- “

“No swearing. One of Pepper’s new rules.” Rhodey blinks at Tony. 

“Okay…Tony why- “

“Does she look this way? Don’t know, it’s all natural though, Clemmons checked her out. Or why does she only have one arm? Don’t know that either, she was dropped off by some medieval looking vortex travelling wizard, didn’t stop to chat or explain anything—only left this really vague note. It’s okay though ‘cause I’m working on prosthetic limbs now so that’s cool. Or why did I adopt a baby? I just felt that I was supposed to, if that makes sense. Probably not. I’ve had her for a couple weeks and she is legally mine now, by the way, so even though you may find her adorable, you can’t have her.”

“…did you just say vortex travelling wizard?”

“Yeah, I’ll have Jarvis show you the footage later. Anyways, you want to be the Godfather?” 

“Jesus Tony, I’ve only known about the kid for 2 minutes,” Rhodey was still trying to wrap his head around the whole thing and while usually he could keep up pretty well with Tony, he had to admit he was struggling right now.

“So is that a yes? Because while Obie is great and all, I would rather not ask him”

“Shit… “

“Language!” Rhodey raises his eyebrows at Tony in an expression that said really? You of all people telling someone else to watch their language? Rhodes had to admit though, he could already tell Tony was dedicated to this.

“Of course, I’ll be your kid’s Godfather,” Rhodey just snorts in defeat, one thing he has learned from being Tony Stark’s best friend is to just roll with the weirdness, “let me hold my Goddaughter then.”

Tony hoists Elli up from his lap and gently deposits her in Rhodey’s arms. She giggles a contagious baby giggle that causes both men to laugh as well.

“She really is adorable.”

“Told you! Wicked smart too, I can tell already.” Rhodey only shakes his head at Tony and begins to tickle the baby girl gently. Her eyes suddenly glow and Rhodey nearly drops her in shock. Every appliance in the kitchen sparks to life making both men jump until Tony takes Elli to calm her down from her giggle fit. 

“What the hell was that Tony?” 

“Now, do I need to get a swear jar for you, Rhodes?”

“TONY!”

******

“TONY!” 

Flinching slightly, Tony tip toes over to the crib he keeps in the lab. Still asleep, thank God. Should he wake her? Obie is here and he hasn’t met her yet. But then again, she has been really fussy the past week and hadn’t been sleeping much. Obie or nap? Obie or nap? Tony looks at her peaceful face. Definitely choosing to let her nap. 

“Tony do you want to explain to me why the hell there are baby toys all over the front entry way?” Obadiah Stane saunters into the lab holding a stuffed rabbit with a look of complete disbelief on his face. Rolling his eyes, Tony gestures for Obie to come closer.

“Obie, shush and come over here to meet my daughter.” Obie’s mouth dropped at the sight of Tony standing over a crib. He walked over to look down at the demon spawn that would surely cause more problems for him in the future. Tufts of white hair frame a chubby face and a pink knitted blanket covers the child up to her shoulders. Tony reaches down to pull out the thumb the child is sucking on to replace with a pacifier. 

“Why didn’t you just pay the mother off?” Obie grips the top of the crib so hard his knuckles turn white. Tony glances at Obie and crinkles his nose. He had expected Obie to question, but he hadn’t expected the malice rolling off of the man in waves right now.

“I don’t know who her mother is.”

“How do you know she is yours then? Did the whore just leave the kid on the doorstep?” 

“Not the doorstep exactly. Obie, she isn’t biologically mine. I adopted her.” Obie’s fists relax as he turns to look at Tony for the first time since spotting the crib.

“Why would you do that Tony?”

“Why not?” 

Obie blinks at the tone, he had never heard Tony speak in such a guarded way before. He returns to looking at the baby sitting in the crib, this just complicated his plans. Why Tony decided he needed a kid right now was beyond him. An awkward silence surrounds them until Obie looks up as Tony begins to speak.

“Her name is Elli, since you forgot to ask.” Obie just nods and both men look back down as the child squirms slightly to lift both arms above her head. Obie’s face twists into in a look of utter disgust.

“What the hell is wrong with it?”

“Nothing is wrong with her.” Tony is now the one gripping the crib as Obie leans in to inspect the child closer. 

“Tony, the thing has no left arm.” If the press found out Tony had a child that was disabled, the investors would have a field day. An heir that isn’t perfect didn’t bode well for the company’s future. 

“Get out.” Something snaps in Tony. He is practically hyperventilating, the anger is boiling in his head, threatening to burst. How dare he say something was wrong with Ellie. How dare he refer to her as a thing. 

“Tony- “

“GET OUT RIGHT NOW!” Tony scoops Elli up as she begins to cry and practically runs up the stairs. So much for her nap. Once locked in her bedroom, Tony bounces slightly on his knees trying to calm both of them down. Pepper eventually shows up with a bottle and a knowing look. She gives Elli a kiss on the head and holds Tony awkwardly in a hug for a few minutes before leaving for the day. 

Obie has called multiple times but each time Tony tells Jarvis to ignore them. He isn’t sure when he will be able to speak to the man. He will have to eventually, he does help run the company and is the only father figure Tony has ever had. Sitting in the rocking chair his mother used to sit in, Tony watches Elli sleep soundly in his arms. For only having lived such a short life, Elli had already been through so much and Obie dared to judge her for it. The heat in his stomach grew again. Nothing was wrong with her, no matter what Obie said, his daughter was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaaaaaahhhhhh


	3. Obie begs for forgiveness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just fixing some grammar

Obie apologized in many different fashions over the next few months. First was the series of phone calls, some sounded sincere, others were complacent and telling Tony not to be so sensitive. Those ones didn’t help his case.

When it was clear the phone messages weren’t going to cut it, Obie went for a different method. He started sending gifts. Everyday a multitude of baby clothes, stuffed animals, and other baby toys arrived in the mail. Tony tried to throw them out just to make a point, but Pepper stopped him. While Elli already had all the clothes and toys she would ever need, Pepper convinced him they shouldn’t waste the gifts. So, at the end of every week the local orphanage had an anonymous package delivered as a result of Obadiah’s endless… _generosity_. 

It was only when a snowy white pony with a big red bow on its tail showed up on the front porch that Pepper had had enough. Tony knew he could’ve kept it up forever, but his P.A. was adamant that he talked to his business partner/godfather. She wasn’t going to find homes each week for whatever animal Obie sent next. And so, Tony forgave Obie in words only. They were okay on the outside, but Tony wasn’t sure if he would ever see the man the same way again. And he was most definitely never taking Obie up on his offer to babysit. The man had only offered to gain back favor from Tony, after all. 

It was around when Elli had started crawling that Obie felt he could show up at the mansion again and pester Tony about the company. They were in the lab, Elli sitting in a playpen that had a specially made mat so she could crawl without irritating the skin at the end of her legs. While Pepper had ordered special socks meant for amputees, Elli took them off each time and threw them as far as her little arm could chuck them. Which wasn’t very far but the kid had a point to make. Tony had laughed at Pepper’s frustration and proceeded to make a special mat for his daughter with Jarvis. 

“I don’t have anything to show you, Obie.” Tony sits at his workstation with schematics that Obadiah could never fully understand floating around him. The man had shown up with a stuffed bear that was bigger than Dummy and had acted so excited to see Elli, Tony almost threw up.

“Come on Tony. You haven’t given me anything good since you adopted Elli. The board is getting impatient,” Tony snorted, “I know you still have been working everyday. Pepper told me. Why don’t you just show me what you’re working on so we can at least throw the investors a bone to chew.”

Tony glanced back at the man, the sooner he gave him what he wanted, the sooner he left.

“Jarvis, pull up Project Eleanor.” The current schematics and numbers blinked out of existence and in their place a what looked to be a drawing of an arm and a leg popped up. Looking closer, Obie’s eyes widened as he realized they were much more than that.

“You’re building her replacement limbs?”

“Well, yeah. Elli was the inspiration, but SI can produce them too. There are other people in the world like her. And they’ll be useful with our military contracts. War veterans and other amputees can put a mechanical limb to good use. I wanted to have them done and legalized before she starts attempting to walk, I would rather she learn with these then having to learn twice.”

Obie stared at the floating blueprints with his eyes wide and his mouth slightly open. Only Tony could pull this off in such a short amount of time, and all on his own too. A big grin broke across his face.

“You had me worried there for a while. Thought you had lost your touch when Elli showed up,” Obie shook his head while his mind thought of all the profits to be made, he missed the glare Tony sent his way, “This is great Tony. Just fantastic. Make sure to send this to the research department by the end of the week.”

Without bothering to say goodbye to either of them, Obie bounded up the stairs already on the phone with a board member that had been particularly vocal the past few months. Tony only rolled his eyes and went to carry Elli upstairs for her afternoon bottle. He had sent the file two weeks ago, Obie just assumed Tony always asked for permission. Not.

Testing was later this afternoon; Tony was actually going in—he wanted to make sure everything was perfect. This project was different. While the weapons he made protected American soldiers, they also caused pain and destruction. These mechanical limbs were going to help a lot of people, not just Elli. 

* * *

“Pep, I’m telling you she was trying to say my name earlier.” The two of them were sitting at the kitchen counter, Elli’s highchair next to Tony so he could feed her apple sauce. Elli’s hair was now long enough that Pepper was able to style it into a single pig tail that stood straight up on top of her head. Her onesie was a bright pink that said _‘I’m a Daddy’s girl’_ in white cursive lettering. 

“I believe you, Tony,” Pepper continued going through documents Tony needed to sign, humming in agreement but obviously not paying attention.

“Jarvis will tell you.” Tony huffed at her lack of enthusiasm.

“She was rehearsing all night, Sir. Must be stage fright.” Tony narrowed his eyes at one of Jarvis’s cameras while Pepper started to laugh. So she was listening.

“Har, har.”

Tony decided to ignore Jarvis and Pepper’s teasing. Mostly because it had been a good day so far. Since testing had begun a month ago, the volunteers had reported little to no problems adjusting to the prosthetic limbs. In fact, every subject loved them. A young woman that had once been a marathon runner but had lost her left leg in an accident actually hugged him today. It had felt…nice. 

At the rate RD was going, Elli would be fitted with her own in the next year or so. Clemmons said babies generally start walking at a little before the age of 2 and Elli was estimated to be about 8 or 9 months old. It would be perfect timing. And Dr. Clemmons had doubted him. Ha.

“Come on Elli, say ‘Dada’ so I can shove it in Pepper’s face.” Elli gurgled incoherently in response but there was definitely a ‘da’ sound in there somewhere.

“Watch daddy now,” Pepper looked up from her papers as Tony elongated ‘Dada’ into _Daaaaaaada, “_ See, Dada. Now you try.”

“Daaaaaaaa...”

“Pepper,” without looking over, Tony began smacking Pepper’s shoulder, “Pepper it’s happening. Oh my God, Jarvis you better be recording this.”

“Of course, Sir.” Tony was practically vibrating in his seat.

“…Da. Dada.” Elli grinned as Tony flew into the air and took a victory lap around the kitchen.

* * *

For the special occasion, Tony had dressed Elli up in a fluffy pink dress with gold sequins sown into the skirt. Pepper’s gift was currently in Elli’s hair, the gold butterfly bobby pins keeping the white tufts of hair out of the toddler’s face. It was an anniversary/birthday party due to no one actually knowing Elli’s actual date of birth. So Tony decided to just make it the day she had appeared in his living room. They had spent the entire day getting ready. Even though it was going to be a party of five adults plus a 1-year-old, Pepper had insisted on decorating the living room and kitchen. Pink and green streamers hung from every corner of the ceiling and balloons were everywhere. For some reason, Tony had a helium tank in the lab and Pepper had used it to her advantage. A cake with frosting flowers sat on the counter. You would think Tony would have the self control not to stick his finger in the frosting, but unfortunately Pepper has had to have Rhodey guard it all day.

Happy and Dr. Clemmons were coming later, around 6 o’clock. Obie was not coming—he was currently in Japan—but had had a fluffy Golden Retriever puppy with a pink ribbon wrapped around its neck delivered earlier in the morning. Pepper thought she was going to have to take it home until a certain toddler’s squeals of delight melted Tony’s dislike of small furry creatures. Despite Obie’s objection however, Tony had let Elli name the dog and, due to her limited range of sounds, had declared the name to be ‘Deedee’. They were currently learning the names of animals and ‘deedee’ was as close as she could get to ‘dog’. 

“Elli do you want some apple juice?” Rhodey was in charge of the toddler while Tony and Pepper moved presents from some closet in the mansion to the kitchen table.

“No!” 

“No apple juice?”

“NO!”

“That means yes in Elli-speak. She is in a ‘no’ phase right now.” Tony walked past Rhodey with a box wrapped in silver paper with blue balloons. 

Nodding, Rhodey filled a purple sippy cup and brought it over to the playpen Elli and Deedee were currently sitting in. There weren’t too many presents, a 1-year-old didn’t need much. After Pepper had arranged the gifts to be aesthetically pleasing, the three of them sat down to chat. Rhodey drank beer, Pepper a white wine, and Tony black coffee. Not being able to hide his shock, Pepper explained to Rhodey that Tony barely drank anymore. Elli required too much attention for him to be constantly buzzed like her used to be. In fact, Tony hadn’t been to a party since last year when Elli had come into their lives. Parenthood had changed the man greatly.

“Sir, Dr. Clemmons and Mr. Hogan have arrived.”

“Great, now the party can start!” Tony hopped out of his chair and scooped Elli up to go greet the guests at the door. 

The group opened presents first. The presents had included puzzles, books, and various stuffed animals. Tony’s favorite gift had been a frame with a photo of Tony bottle feeding Elli. Pepper had snuck it on her phone one day. Tony was wearing a ratty old ACDC t-shirt and his favorite pair MIT sweatpants. It had been early in the morning, so both of their hair had had a bad case of bedhead sticking up at all angles. Despite his worn and torn appearance, Tony thought he looked happier in that moment then any one of the photos published by the press in the past ten years.

When it was time for cake, Tony had blown out the candles for the toddler. Everyone had clapped and cheered causing Elli to giggle with excitement. Elli had then been placed back into her highchair with her own slice to dig into. The adults had laughed when she ignored her spork and dug in with just her bare hand. It was while they were eating their own portions of the cake that Tony suddenly jumped out of his chair, startling everyone.

“Elli you come back down here right now!” Everyone’s eyes had widened exponentially as they looked up to see a floating toddler. The girl was giggling as she began spinning slowly, an electric blue glow outlining her body. Happy fainted at the sight. Tony chased after her as she floated about the kitchen. Finally, the glow dimmed, and the toddler dropped into her father’s waiting arms. Dr. Clemmons inspected Elli for any injuries as Rhodey looked up in complete disbelief at what his life had become.

“Is that frosting on the ceiling?”

* * *

Elli wasn’t quite sure what to make of the new extensions of her arm and feet. When they had first appeared, they had hurt quite a lot, but now they were just kind of there. She was able to get the hang of having a left arm pretty quickly, after all it was just like her right one. The feet were more difficult. She and her daddy were sitting on the floor in front of the T.V. He had placed her on his lap so she could see both of their feet together.

“Now Elli, see how I am curling my toes? Can you try doing that for me?” Pepper had painted both of their toes earlier that day. Her toes were orange because that was her favorite color that week while her daddy’s were red and gold. 

Concentrating really hard, Elli watched as her new feet twitched a few times before her toes curled just like her daddy’s. Her head shot up to smile at her daddy, a bright smile on his face as well. 

“Good?”

“Very good, sweetie. Can you try bending your knees now?” Elli nodded and followed her daddy’s example.

“Looks like it is going well.” Elli squirmed out of her daddy’s lap and held her arms up.

“Peppa! Peppa! I can wiggle my toes!” The woman scooped her off the floor and Elli lifted one of her legs to show her. 

“Amazing!” Pepper showered her with kisses and then plopped her on the couch so Elli could watch Mickey Mouse. Deedee hopped up next to her and put her head in Elli’s lap. Using her left hand, Elli practiced petting gently. Her daddy said that her new arm was very strong, so she had to be extra careful.

“They look so real. It’s like she had them all along.” Elli decided to only pay somewhat attention to what her Aunty Pepper and daddy were saying, Mickey was currently singing the clubhouse song.

“I know. I’m so glad that marathon runner mentioned her friends saying she looked like a cyborg. I wouldn’t have thought to make the faux skin sealing.” 

It was when Elli decided she was thirsty that she discovered she had a problem. Her juice was all the way over on the coffee table! Now normally she would just make it float to her, but her daddy was making her wear her special bracelet. When she was wearing her special bracelet, she didn’t float on accident but she couldn’t make stuff move to her either. And daddy usually let her take it off in the house, but he said she had to wear it until she got used to her legs since she kept using her powers to move them on accident. 

Frustrated and unable to get her daddy’s attention, Elli shimmied off the couch and landed on the floor with a soft thump. Gripping onto the leather couch, Elli glared at her legs. She could do this; her daddy used his legs to move all the time. 

* * *

Tony was extremely pleased with how the surgery had gone. Elli’s prosthetics were slightly different from the others—hers had interchangeable parts due to her being a child, she would need to get upgrades as she grew—but they worked just as well, if not better than the original designs. The faux skin was a great addition that he would introduce to the SI models as well. The only hint at where the prosthetic began was the thin line where the seal met actual skin. Pepper had jumped at the chance to paint Elli’s toenails for the first time, and when his baby girl had insisted his be painted too, he hadn’t even hesitated. The young marathon runner, Grace had been her name, had told Tony how much she had missed having painted toes. She had said how she felt silly, since it was such a minor thing, but it was what she was looking forward to the most—after being able to run again, of course.

“Oh my gosh, Tony turn around.”

Tony whipped around just in time to see Elli take her hands off the couch. The coffee table had been moved so that Tony could sit with his legs stretched out in front of him, so it was a little farther than usual. Both of them watched in silence, Tony cheering internally as to not break Elli’s concentration. He almost wants to laugh at the Frankenstein walk she is doing; they’ll have to work on her bending her knees and ankles some more. When she makes it the four feet from the couch to the coffee table, Pepper and Tony burst in excitement causing Elli to fall onto her butt in alarm. Jarvis made sure to take plenty of pictures.

* * *

“Come on Tony, you’ve barely had anything to do with the company in the past three years. The kid can be watched for a while you go to Afghanistan.”

Tony wheeled around to look at Obie on the screen. He was getting some work done in the lab while Pepper took Elli to the park. She was old enough that he could get her to wear tinted glasses and a knitted hat that hid her hair and eyes well enough that someone would have to be paying attention to notice the unique coloring. 

“Obie I’ve never been gone for more than two days. I would rather not travel to a war zone the first time I’m gone for longer than that.”

“Okay so a week, tops. And Tony, you’re going to be with the U.S. military in the middle of a desert demonstrating a missile. Nothing bad is going to happen.”

“For some reason that doesn’t make me feel better.” Tony snorts and turns back to what he was working on. 

“Please Tony, the investors want to see you. Not me, it’s not my name on the company.” Tony didn’t pick up on it but there was a hint of bitterness as Obadiah said those words.

“I’ll think about it.”

* * *

Tony squeezed his daughter as tight as he could without breaking her. She giggled sweetly as his beard tickled her cheek as he kissed her in an exaggerated motion. 

“Pwomise you’ll be back?” Tony leaned his forehead against Elli’s as she tried not to pout. She was a big girl and her daddy had assured her he would be back home soon.

“I promise, muffin.”

“Peppa said we could go the pawk wheneva I wanted but I don’t want Peppa to take me to the pawk. I want you to take me to the pawk.” Elli sniffled, it’s not that she didn’t like Pepper. She just really loved her daddy.

“I know, baby but if you promise to be a good girl for Pepper, we’ll go to the park AND get ice cream when I get back.” Elli’s eyes lit up.

“Ice cweam?”

“Of course!” 

Tony chuckles at her excitement, he knows she won’t be forgetting that promise. He reaches down into his pocket when his phone starts to ring.

“What’s up, platypus?”

_“Tony,_ _your flight was scheduled to leave an hour and a half ago.”_

“That's funny, I thought with it being my plane and all, that it would just wait for me

to get there.” Rhodey sighs at his friend.

“ _I know there is some separation anxiety…”_

“Excuse you, Elli is three. She can have all the separation anxiety she needs.” Tony blows as raspberry at the toddler on his hip causing her to burst into a fit of giggles.

“ _Not talking about Elli. Tony just hurry up and get here already.”_ A click ends the conversation as Pepper walks up to the father and daughter.

“That was rude.”

“He has a point, say your final goodbyes.”

“Alright, alright. I love you princess.”

“I love you too daddy.” Tony passes his daughter off to Pepper before being herded to the town car by Happy.

“Remember bath time is a 7! And no juice after 6!”

“Tony, I keep track of both of your lives. I know the schedule, just get to the airport before the plane leaves.”

“Doesn't it kind of defeat the whole purpose of having your own plane if it departs before you arrive?”

* * *

Before Tony can even exit the town car, reporters are swarming. He definitely hadn’t missed this.

“Mr. Stark, where have you been the past three years? Is it true you have become a hermit?”

“Mr. Stark, there has been rumors of a Mrs. Stark causing you to end your playboy lifestyle. Can you confirm this?”

“Mr. Stark is it true that you are terminally ill?”

Tony deflected most questions by repeating the phrase _no comment_ as he made his way through the crowd, but one woman was extremely persistent.

“Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark! You've been called the da Vinci of our time. What do you say to that?” 

“Absolutely ridiculous. I don't paint.” Well not masterpieces at least. Elli loved to finger paint.

“And what do you say to your other nickname? ‘The Merchant of Death’?” The woman was practically in his face now.

“That's not bad,” his weapons had caused a lot of death, but they protected the young men and women serving his country so he had little to no guilt, “Let me guess. Berkeley?”

“Brown, actually.”

“Well, Ms. Brown, it's an imperfect world, but it's the only one we've got,” if this world were perfect, Elli would have never have had to suffer like she did, “I guarantee you, the day weapons are no longer needed to keep the peace, I'll stick to only making prosthetics and baby bottles.”

“Rehearse that much?”

“Every night in front of the mirror before bedtime.” He had stopped walking now, the other reporters having been left behind when security pushed them back. How she managed to sneak past, he would never know.

“All I want is a serious answer.”

“Okay, here's serious. Until it is guaranteed that our children are safe, I’m going to stick to my old man’s philosophy, ‘Peace means having a bigger stick than the other guy.’”

“That's a great line coming from the guy selling the sticks.”

“My father helped defeat the Nazis. He worked on the Manhattan Project. A lot of people, including your professors at Brown, would call that being a hero.”

“And a lot of people would also call that war profiteering. You are still making money after you blow people up with those new prosthetics.” Tony was ready to hit the bitch.

“Tell me, do you plan to report on the millions we've saved by advancing medical technology or kept from starvation with our intelli-crops? All those breakthroughs, military funding, honey.” 

Before she can say another word, Tony turns on his heel and practically sprints toward the plane. God, did he hate the paparazzi. Vultures, that was the only word for them.

“What's wrong with you?” Tony looks up to see Rhodey scowling.

“What?”

“Three hours.”

“Elli needed extra kisses and then I got caught doing a piece for Vanity Fair.” Tony shrugs his shoulders. Nothing he could do about it now.

“For three hours. For three hours you got me standing here.”

“Waiting on you now. Let's go. Come on.” The sooner they left and got this demonstration over with, the sooner he could get back and see Elli.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I do a chapter of just Tony being obsessed with his kid? Like taking photos and being proud of every little thing she does?

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, editing is so much work, I usually just pump out a chapter and post it-horrible grammar and all. I'm so tired now lol. I felt like the first chapter was the roughest because when I wrote it I had no idea where the story was going. I really liked fullmetal alchemist (still do) and was reading way too many parent Tony stark fics at the time so I figured I'd just combine them and that is how this story came to be. Ta daaa.
> 
> Also, if any of my peeps from fanfiction come out, lemme know if there any other tags or warning I should add. Thanks for reading <3


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